kevin drum on mother jones points out spend willing be lower in a decade than when ronald reagan took office. the president who increased spending to its highest level in the past 30 years was george w. bush. compare spending to tax revenue, taxes are at their lowest levels in a half century. additional tax reforms would easily help cut the deficit even further. republicans need to keep talking about spending in order to get concessions of the big three. here is the troubling part in this whole conversation. when it comes to social security, they may have a willing partner. his name president barack obama, who has repeatedly made offers to republicans on cuts to social security. the recent fiscal cliff negotiations, president obama gave house speaker john boehner a third proposal, increasing the tax rate threshold to $400,000 and adding chained cpi, which is

a benefit reduction in social security. that's the only way you can look at it. republicans did not take the plan. when harry reid was negotiating with senate republican leader mitch mcconnell, the president allegedly asked reid to put social security reforms back on the table, according to multiple accounts, senator reid was so unhappy with the proposal, he threw it into a burning fireplace in his office. the white house says a formal offer on social security was never made. but president obama's position on social security reform really isn't hard to find. in his 2006 book, "the audacity of hope," president obama wrote, "the problems with the social security trust fund are real but manageable. in 1983, when facing a similar problem, ronald reagan and house speaker tip o'neill got together and shaped a bipartisan plan that stabilized the system for the next 60 years. there is no reason we can't do the same today." this is true. ronald reagan and tip o'neill

cut a deal to ensure social security's solvency in the out years. it's not clear why we need to do the same thing today, nor this round of negotiations. right now full benefits in social security are guaranteed until 2038. if there are no changes, 81% of all benefits would still be paid after that. one way to close the gap is to increase the payroll tax by 1.6%. another way is to lift the $110,000 cap on payroll taxes. reform is possible without drastic cuts to benefits. and that's where the argument is right now, benefit cuts now. that's what the republicans want because, remember, they want the new deal. they want to get rid of all government entitlement programs. this would be a big opportunity for them to start down that road. most democrats are quick to point out social security has nothing to do with our deficit. >> social security does not add one penny to our debt, not a

debt. it's a separate funded operation. and we can do things that i believe we should now, smaller things, play it out over the long-term that gives it solvency. >> despite the truth, president obama has never been shy about reforming social security. >> we're going to have to take on entitlements. and i think we got to do it quickly. we're going to have a lot of work to do, so i can't guarantee that we're going to do it in the next two years. but i would like to do it in my first term as president. >> the president aligned himself with mitt romney, who wanted to raise the social security eligibility age. >> i suspect that on social security we've got a somewhat similar position. social security is structurally sound. it's going to have to be tweaked the way it was by ronald reagan and speaker -- democratic speaker tip o'neill. negative, one can say the president has not been straight with us about his intentions to reform social security. but this is not a president who ignores the voice of the american people either. democrats and progressives who want to maintain the big three

need to speak up and be active. republicans are baiting president obama into a negotiation on entitlement reform. before he gives them what they want, he should listen to another republican. >> social security has nothing to do with the deficit. social security is totally funded by the payroll tax leveed on employer and employee. if you reduce the outgo of social security, that money would not go into the general fund to reduce the deficit. it would go into the social security trust fund. so social security has nothing to do with balancing a budget or erasing or lowering the deficit. >> social security is not the problem. let's make sure it stays off the table in these talks. get your cell phones out. i want to know what you think. tonight's question, will republican lies about social security work on the american people? text a for yes, text b for now to 622639. you can always go to our blog

and leave a comment. we'll bring you results later on in the program. joining me tonight is a senator who has been on the front lines when it comes to protecting the big three, senator bernie sanders of vermont. senator, great to have you with us on this friday evening. thank you. >> good to be with you. >> how can we keep social security from being offered up in these financial negotiations when you have a president who is on record saying that he is open to change? how do you interpret that? how do you keep him out of the mix? >> well, we've got to make the president and republicans and any democrats that want to cut social security an offer they can't refuse, and that is tens of millions of people have got to make it very clear to congress, social security has nothing to do with the deficit. what deficit reduction needs right now is to ask the largest corporations in this country who are profitable to a record-breaking degree, one

quarter of whom pay no taxes at all. their effective corporate tax rate is the lowest in many, many years. so what we have got to say is no, mr. president, you're not going to cut social security, you're not going to cut medicaid, you're not going to cut medicare. by the way, ed, as chairman of the veterans committee, let me also point out that the so-called chained cpi will make devastating cuts for disabled veterans, for widows who lost their husbands in iraq and afghanistan. no, that is not the way we are going to do deficit reduction. >> are you confident that the president will protect social security? >> no, i am not confident that the president will protect social security. what i am confident in is that every senior organization in this country, including the aarp, the national committee to defend social security and medicare, they're going to be there fighting with us to protect social security. the american legion, the

disabled american veterans, all the veterans organizations are going to be there. the afl-cio and all the unions will be there. and i think the vast majority of the american people are going to be there. what we are talking about, ed, and you made this point, we're not talking about financial issues. we're talking about ideology. what the republicans want to do is destroy the social safety net that has existed in this country since the 1930s. they just -- they want to give more tax breaks to people who don't need it and decimate the programs that working families and the middle class desperately depend upon. this is a fight for the soul of america. it is a fight for the soul of the democratic party. >> the conservative editorial page of "the wall street journal" thinks the debt ceiling threat is a bluff. they wrote today, "you can't take a hostage you aren't prepared to shoot." do you think republicans are willing to shoot the hostage in this negotiation? >> well, what i think is that

the employers of many of our republican colleagues, wall street, and the big money interests know absolutely that if the united states for the first time in its history defaults, does not pay its debt, it could lead to an international financial crisis, which will be bad for wall street, which will be bad for big business. and i think they are telling the republicans not to go down that path. >> speaking of wall street, are you willing -- i keep hearing that you're going to offer up a transaction tax that will generate several billion to shore up this social security fund. do you think you would get support on that? >> i think we get support from the american people. and i think more and more folks are looking at that as an option. it would do two things. it would bring in many hundreds of millions of dollars over a ten-year period. it would put a damper on speculation on wall street. the other thing that we have got to do, ed, is that right now we

are losing $100 billion a year because of big money interests and wealthy individuals stashing their money in tax havens like the cayman islands and bermuda. one-fourth of profitable corporations don't pay a nickel in taxes. there is a lot that we can do to raise substantial revenue, which will not only protect the social safety net, it will allow us to invest in america and start creating the jobs. >> and that transaction tax, what are you talking about? a half cent sales tax on every transaction made on wall street or what? >> exactly. it depends. >> sure. >> it is a good step forward. >> senator bernie sanders, great to have you on "the ed show." thank you so much. remember to answer the question at the bottom of the screen, share your thoughts on twitter and on ed show and facebook. we always want to know what you think. coming up, the republican deception on the debt ceiling continues, even though newt gingrich is telling his party to stop. but first, today the associated press released the final vote totals from november's election.

president obama officially ended up with 51% of the vote? that's right. mitt romney's total is, you won't believe it, 47%. not only is the final romney percentage ironic, it's actually hilarious. but president obama's total makes him the first president since dwight d. eisenhower to win 51% of the vote twice. today in a joint session of congress, joe biden and president obama officially won the count in the electoral college system. and as we go to a break, let's listen to the vice president announce the big win, accompanied with a little arena rock to biden things up a bit. >> barack obama, the state of illinois has received for president of the united states 332 votes. mitt romney the state of massachusetts has received 206 votes. joseph biden of the state of delaware has received for vice president of the united states 332 votes. paul ryan in the state of wisconsin received 206 votes. the joint session is dissolved.

♪ more than a feeling, more than a feeling ♪

misinformation campaign on the debt ceiling continues. congressman tim ryan on how democrats are fighting back. and eugene robinson and howard fineman join us to say which side of the party has the upper hand in negotiations. later, bill o'reilly can't figure out why hardworking asian americans would vote for liberals. legendary actor and activist george takei is here to respond tonight. don't forget you listen to my radio show on sirius xm radio, 1:00 through 3:00. share your thoughts on facebook and twitter using the hash tag ed show. we're coming right back.

welcome back to "the ed show." thanks for watching tonight. the republican misinformation campaign on the debt ceiling got a big shot in the arm today thanks to senator john cornyn of texas. cornyn wrote an op-ed discussing the coming deadlines of the sequester, the continuing resolution to fund the government, and the debt limit. it may be necessary to partially shut down the government in order to secure the long-term fiscal well-being of our country, rather than plod along the path of greece, italy and spain. it caught the attention of a lot of folks. let's be clear. not raising the debt limit is not the same as a partial government shutdown. it would cause an immediate financial collapse with long-term national and global consequences. senator cornyn's office was asked if his government shutdown

comments refer to the continuing resolution to fund the government or the debt ceiling or both. a spokeswoman said she didn't see a distinction between the two in terms of republicans using them as leverage. she says "i wouldn't look too much into it." she said," i think there are three big deadlines." you think? republicans want to use those three big deadlines as leverage, and republicans want to blur the distinction between them. meanwhile, the king of the government shutdown, former house speaker newt gingrich says republicans should not be flirting with the debt ceiling. >> for example, everybody is now talking about okay, now comes the debt ceiling. i think that is, frankly, a dead loser. because in the end, you know what is going to happen. the whole national financial system is going to come into washington by television and say oh my god, this will be a gigantic heart attack. the entire economy of the world will collapse. you guys can't be responsible. and they'll cave. >> am joined tonight by ohio congressman tim ryan. congressman, good to have you

with us on this friday evening. i think that might have been about the best advice ever come from the former speaker, calling it a dead loser. he is calling their bluff here. but why do the republicans keep going down this road? >> well, they just -- you know, they got this thing going on where they just keep talking to each other, and they keep lurching and further and further to the right. just think when newt gingrich becomes the voice of reason within the republican party, how far to the right they must have lurched. and i just think they're worried, because if they pull up the debt ceiling as -- and they try to hold the president and the democrats hostage over the debt ceiling, the contrast is going to be well, what are you going to cut? are you going to put these deep cuts in the medicare? are you going to put them in medicaid and nursing homes and these kind of things? so if they bring it up, they're really playing with fire not only for the financial side of things, but if you're holding hostage, what do you want them to cut? >> well, from your perspective on the democratic side, the progressive side, there is an

opportunity here for the republicans to confuse a lot of people. debt ceiling, government shutdown, you know, a lot of misinformation out there, who to believe, and, you know, a lot of average americans really aren't schooled up on exactly what all of this means. that's why i think that gingrich may have done the country a favor right there by cutting right to the chase on what it would really mean. but what do the democrats have to do in this campaign? >> i think do what i heard a clip earlier in the show, what ronald reagan did. you go out as president, you use the bully pulpit, and you clearly and articulately explain to the american people the differences. reagan was talking about social security and the deficit. the president can come out and explain exactly how this is going down, and the good part about it is the narrative has already been cast. the republicans look extremely extreme. they had a great deal the other day and they even tried to muck that thing up while they were dealing with it within the republican caucus the other day. so the narrative is favoring

obama now. so if he goes out as the president and explains exactly the difference between a debt ceiling and a government shutdown, and what is at stake if they hold us hostage, i think the story is already leaning in his favor, and all he has to do is really explain to it the american people and he'll be a winner, and what gingrich said will happen. >> what about the vice president's role here? the president has relied on joe biden. been pretty successful so far. should the vice president be brought in soon their time around? >> i think you should have the vice president have the republican senators come through, and he should just take pictures with them, and just continue the charm offensive. but clearly biden is going to be a huge player in all of this. he is just so schooled and so sophisticated and knows the nuances of every single issue that is coming down the pike. i think the president will be very wise to put vice president biden in the middle of these negotiations. >> but when it comes to social security, as we've talked about, president obama is on record in

his book, in the debates, and in some stump speeches and interviews about where he stands on being open to change. how can he go back and negotiate on debt ceiling when the republicans are sitting there looking at chipping away at the big three, and not move on that? >> well, i mean, it's disheartening to hear it. but i think the president got to keep his eye on the ball here. social security is not the problem for this particular issue that we're talking about. if he wants to deal with that on a side war issue in another way, and there are other solutions there that aren't what the president or the republicans are talking about, i think he's got to -- that's his job too as president, ed. keep the focus. keep everybody's eye on the ball with the current issue of the day. and he can't let us get distracted. he can't let the american people get distracted by this sidebar discussion about social security. >> congressman tim ryan, great to have you on "the ed show" tonight. thank you so much. >> all right, ed. >> you bet. republicans are planning to take a hostage with the debt

ceiling coming up. then the nypd offers some advice from a hostage negotiator. eugene robinson and howard fineman with the latest on all of that. and later, the house passes a partial sandy relief bill, but not without republican opposition. lizz winstead weighs in on the sandy 67. stay tuned.

welcome back to "the ed

show." our country really is on the verge of one of the most important financial discussions that we have ever had. yet republicans are planning to hold americans hostage by using the debt court of appealing to cut the big three, go after the entitlements. the only move they have is to spread misinformation in a desperate attempt to gain support, because if you look at every poll, they don't have the support that the president has. meanwhile, president obama is going to need to show what leverage he has. the white house is going to need to position itself perfectly in order to prevent a financial collapse from happening. the american people and the president are on one side of the table, the hostage-taking republicans on the other side. how is it all going to work out? let's turn tonight to eugene robinson from the "washington post" and nbc news political analyst howard fineman. great to have both of you with us tonight. howard, you first. how nervous is the white house that they may really have to make some changes in social security in order to avert what the republicans are threatening? >> well, i don't think that's their number one concern.

i think their number one concern is the -- are the uncontrollable emotions, political emotions of the hard-core of the republican party. newt gingrich can advise them base on his own experience not to go down that road. but they seem bound and determined to do it. if you thought the upset over the tax increase was a big deal, wait until you get a load of this, because the republican hard-core is even talking about the notion that the president wants to get rid of the law that requires a vote on the debt ceiling. they've got all kinds of conspiracy theories going on about that that border on apocalyptic. and i think that is the white house's big concern, that the republicans are sort of an uncontrollable and dangerous force. and even if the republicans are going to lose politically as they would were there to be a shutdown. >> sure. >> it would have a lot of cost economically for the country. >> eugene, what is your reaction to senator cornyn's -- i mean this guy is in leadership with the republicans. he just didn't show up yesterday. he has been around for a while.

he is talking reckless. >> yeah, that's certainly troubling. then again he is in the senate. the senate is controlled by democrats. of course there is the filibuster and everything. but we assume the senate is not going to be as much of a problem as the house. you know, there is a scenario in which this can work out just fine, as long as in the end, john, boehner does what he did the last time, which is recognize reality and allow the debt ceiling to be raised with democratic votes and some republican votes. now that got him in some trouble last week and will get him in trouble again if he does it again. but this may be no other way around it. >> greg sargent, the "washington post" interviewed a veteran nypd hostage negotiator today about this standoff. i mean, we're going with all angles here, folks. his advice to president obama may have a trump card in his back pocket that will resolve the situation without the gop's help.

if necessary, one of the most important goals is getting the hostage taker to realize that ultimately he is not in control of the situation. i mean, that's some pretty heavy stuff when we start talking about true hostage taking. but it really does come down to business negotiation. both sides have to want to make a deal. are the republicans, eugene, in a position where maybe they don't want to make a deal? maybe this is the waterloo for the economy, and that is the best way to get to the big three? >> well, which republicans? i don't think that's the view frankly of the republican leadership, even the leadership of the house. i don't think john boehner wants to send the economy down the tubes and have republicans and him as speaker blamed for it. i don't think he wants that outcome. but a lot of his caucus wouldn't mind that outcome. so that's the problem. can he bring them along, can he convince them that they're not in control of the situation, and that some accommodation should be made, or not. and if not, does he then turn to

nancy pelosi essentially. >> sure. >> and the republicans who are willing to vote to raise it and proceed in that manner. >> howard, a lot of talk about leverage. what better leverage can president obama have than the kind of election he had? and also the will of the people. i mean, going on the road, that his best thing to do in all of this? >> well, i think that can augment what is already a pretty strong political position. i mean, what happened ultimately in the fiscal cliff negotiation that we just went through is that even though the president couldn't flip a switch, it eventually became clear to the republicans that a combination of the fact that taxes were going to go up on everybody, which is don't forget what mitch mcconnell said, and the president's popularity and the fact that he won the election, the fact that he is the first one of only eight presidents now, i think it's eight, maybe fewer, who have won two straight elections by more than 51% of the popular vote does give him

some sort of hard to quantify but important upper hand. and i think the republican psychology, at least among the tea party people i talked to, they don't want to pay any attention to that. they feel that they were rolled in the fiscal cliff negotiations and their last clear chance to make the kind of statement they want to make will be on the debt ceiling. and ironically, i think if as tim geithner did, the secretary of the treasury, float this idea of abolishing the law that requires a congressional vote, that sort of the ultimate threat that the president has. whether he can get that through or not. but that's the ultimate nightmare for the tea party. >> quickly both of you gentlemen, i want your take on the filibuster reform that is pending. there is a lot of commentary being given in the senate about what should be done. would this make it a toxic atmosphere, eugene, if harry reid goes for the full ball of wax and really smokes them out the way they have been filibustering and changes the rule? what does that do to debt ceiling negotiations, if anything?

>> well, i think it probably exacerbates the tensions and the bad feelings in the senate, and where the feelings are not that bad right now. i don't know that he will try to push forward on that. >> what than, howard? >> i think he might try it. i think he is being pushed to try it by liberal constituencies who might see that as a payback for a time in which they're having to concede on medicare and medicaid and so forth. he may try it. he may try it. >> eugene robinson, howard fine man, great to have you with us tonight. thanks. >> thanks a lot, ed. there is a lot more. stay with us. >> the republicans in the house and senate are going to decide we're going to start spending more money. >> hurricane sandy aid is finally on the way. but not before 67 house republicans vote against disaster relief. we'll introduce you to the sandy 67 next. i told the governor that i would now like, frankly, to do that. >> barney frank throws his hat in the ring for the massachusetts senate seat. >> coach, put me in.

>> i'll tell row why this is an outstanding idea. and bill o'reilly stereotypes asian americans and smears liberals in the process. >> asian people are not liberal, you know, by nature. they're usually more industrious and hardworking. >> the legendary george takei is here to straighten o'reilly out.

they've been suffering. they have suffered long enough. they need to hear from their government. >> more than two months after sandy hit the east coast, some help is now on the way. today congress approved a $9.7 billion measure to keep the national flood insurance program solvent. that's for the whole country. the program would have otherwise run out of money next week after paying out thousands of insurance claims with thousands more to go. the vote helped john boehner avoid a bigger political

disaster. lawmakers from both sides of the aisle attack the speaker for pulling a larger disaster relief package from consideration earlier this week. today's measure passed by the house by a wide margin of 354-67. all 67 no votes came from republicans. congressman tim huelskamp came on the radio and questioned whether sandy relief is really necessary. >> it's certainly loaded up with pork. it's my understanding that fema, which is spending the money, has billions of dollars right now. they can't spend it all quick enough. and for some reason, this administration and the republicans in the house and the senate decide we're going to start spending more money. i mean, they can't spend it quick enough. and it reminds me of the stimulus package. >> yet huelskamp had no problem supporting relief in august affected by the drought. marsha blackburn, another no vote was quick to lobby for federal disaster relief after

storms went right through her district in tennessee. steve palazzo of mississippi represents a district that suffered extensive damage from hurricane katrina. yet today palazzo voted no to help the victims of hurricane sandy. when severe flooding damaged paul ryan's district in wisconsin, ryan made sure his constituents got government help. his quote was "i have been inspired by the support and cam passion demonstrated by wisconsinites who have reached out to help their neighbors in need." he said at the time. today ryan made no mention of compassion, noting it would be irresponsible to raise an insolvent program's debt ceiling without making necessary reforms. and of course he voted no. joining me tonight, "daly show" co-creator lizz winstead. i guess there are no boundaries when it comes to politics in this country. great to have you with us

tonight, lizz. >> thanks, ed. >> what do you make of all of this? >> living here, and also when the -- when the tornadoes hit in minneapolis, i was there helping those folks too with a fantastic mayor r.t. rybak. so watching this hit my neighborhood and going to redhook and seeing how people couldn't access a lot of these people. it was really hard. and helping people clean out their homes after that and talking to strangers, because you would go in groups. you were assigned by these fabulous people who were coordinating in redhook because there wasn't enough money, and people just needed to get together. and you go into somebody's home, and they're holding their children's baptismal gowns and they're covered in mold, and the mold is toxic, and you have to convince them to toss that out and they need to get rid of that. and you have people voting and there is too much pork in this bill. there is pork in every bill.

wake up. you would put people, you know, at risk and deny them what they need? and then going out to the rockaways. that was a really interesting experience. the rockaways was cut off from public transportation. and those people were stuck out there. when we went in, the one thing you needed to do when you go into a rescue relief areas, you go in with forms. and you have to ask people to fill them out to find out what they need. has someone come? has someone checked your basement? have you been drained out? has your electricity been off? and when you go into neighborhoods that are middle class, lower middle class, black and brown neighborhoods, and you go to the door, and after a year of this gop hammering of people, telling them they're takers, telling them they got gifts because they voted, and to go in there and ask them for information, when you go to their door and you're saying i need to get some information from you -- >> they're scotland yard. >> where do you work, where do you live? they're scarred. what they hear is where do you

work, where do you live? they don't know who i am. and to hear people say that these people don't deserve money, that these people aren't part of america when it's so easy for them. and paul ryan's history of screaming about programs, and then begging for money for them. and same with eric cantor, you know, it's disgusting. this isn't the first time. >> what is dangerous about this, if we don't fully help the victims of sandy, it sets a precedent for the next disaster. >> that's right. >> and of course the conversation will come again, well, look what happened? we didn't go full bore to help the sandy victims. this is just the new america. we don't help our neighbor out anymore. congressman peter king suggested earlier in the week that people in new york and new jersey should no longer give to the house gop campaign. he was hot under the collar. of course, he reversed it when he got the vote. but is there something to that? do the people really have power at this point? >> i think they do. i first of all will not be giving to any republicans. i am going out on record right now i won't be. but i think that people need to speak up.

and i think this is something that over and over and over again we need to remind ourselves. because if we say -- do what we say and we vote, congress, it's a two-term deal. >> but you have got the club for growth was out lobbying members to vote no. >> right. >> their culture is now the way they operate. and they're going to stick to it. so how do we break that, when we have people that you have seen in your neighborhoods trying to put their lives back together? i mean, you're in business. you meet payroll. >> right. >> you do things in business. the business interruption is devastating to a lot of families. i mean people that don't have paychecks. the rent isn't going away. the property taxes aren't going away. the fixed expenses aren't going away. so what would be the best way for the government to help all of these victims in sandy, to make sure that these jobs are going to stay stable? >> well, what i would say first off, when there is a national disaster or a tragic disaster,

every person, congress person and senator who lives in those districts should have to go for a week, forgo their week and go for a week and help clean up and talk to those people, and spend time there so that they can see. and before you vote no, you have to go to those places that you're voting no against, or else you don't get a paycheck, and we know you didn't show up. >> lizz winstead, great to have you with us, and thanks for all you're doing on this. coming up, recently retired barney frank offers to head back to the hill. and the senate gets ready to tackle filibuster reform. stay with us.

coming up, actor and activist george takei joins me to respond to bill o'reilly's latest racist rant. we'll be right back.

thanks for stay with us tonight. former congressman barney frank was in retirement for less than a day before he announced his intention to hold office one more time.

frank revealed today that he has already reached out to massachusetts governor deval patrick and offered to serve as interim senator if john kerry is confirmed as secretary of state. frank cited the fiscal cliff deal as his motivation to head back to the hill. >> that deal now means that february, march and april are going to be among the most important months in american financial. >> so you're considering it? >> i'm not going to be coy. it's not anything i've ever been good at. i would tell the governor that i would now like, frankly, to do that because i would like to be a part of that. >> governor patrick hasn't made any decisions yet, but said barney frank would make a great interim senator. democrats could use a strong progressive voice like barney frank as they stand to tackle other big issues like filibuster reform. on thursday senators tom udall, jeff merkley and tom harkin introduced a resolution to dramatically overhaul the filibuster rules, including a rule to establish the talking filibuster rule. i love it.

the change would force senator who filibustered to actually speak on the floor, unlike the current rules that allow senators to action. >> we need to lay out the elements that are essential for making the senate work. that's getting rid of the silent secret filibuster. this is the way that bills are killed, bills that are important to america. all these bills killed in the dark of night by filibusters where nobody actually showed up and spent anymore n any time and energy. >> when the senate resumes democrats will need 51 votes to change the rules. tonight in our survey i asked will republican lies about social security work on the american people? 25% yes and 75% no. we'll set the record straight with george takei next.

and finally tonight, the guy who keeps telling us that he is not a racist just proved himself wrong again. last night bill o'reilly was spouting off about hawaii and its asian american population. >> you know what is shocking? 35% of the hawaiian population is asian. >> right. >> and asian people are not liberal, you know, by nature. they're usually more industrious and hardworking. >> no insult there.

just an hour ago, one of hawaii's representatives demanded an apology. congresswoman colleen hanabusa issued this statement. "leave it to bill o'reilly to thoughtlessly insult 1.3 million people with one sweeping statement." the congresswoman said the next time bill o'reilly visits our state, i encourage him to spend more time getting to know real people and less time sitting next to the pool and grousing about what he thinks is going on out there. bill o'reilly insists he is not a racist. what do you think? >> wait, wait, wait. elvis presley could sing. he had a good voice. his songs had words. >> yes. >> he put on a show. this is a little fat guy from pyongyang, or some place, seoul. >> wearing sunglasses. >> and he is jumping up and down there. is no comparison between psy,

and there are 16 guys named psy on long island that i can tell you about. they don't look like him. >> the left hates that. hates it, because it is racial profiling. but it's really criminal profiling. in some african-american communities, there is a grievance against whites who aren't sympathetic to their cause. and that may be driving a little bit of it. so there are some african-americans who believe that the reason they're not prospering as a community, all right, is because society hasn't done enough. and the reason society hasn't done enough is because of rich white guys. let's say you're a cocaine deal. >> and you kind of look like one a little bit. >> as do you. you look like a cocaine user. >> there is an outreach. i don't even know what that means, by the obama to administration african-americans. what does that entail? are they going to be on "soul train"? now that is pure racist. nothing else. >> i agree, bill it is pure racism.

let's bring in ed takei here on "the ed show" tonight. mr. takei, great to have you with us. >> good to be here. >> you have an unbelievable following in the social media. people pay attention and look to you for your opinions and your response to things. is bill o'reilly being racist? >> bill o'reilly is absolutely clueless, but he pontificates. and on this thing about asian-americans being industrious and hardworking, well, we're like all americans, you know. yeah, we're industrious and hardworking, but to characterize that as a republican trait is totally off the mark, because the majority of us are democrats. i mean you heard from representative colleen hanabusa from hawaii. the most distinguished asian-american elected official passed recently, the late

senator dan inouye, awarded a hero from the second world war, bearer of the medal of honor, distinguished u.s. senator, served for over 50 years. and he was a strong democrat. almost every elected official, asian-american elected official in washington is asian-american. from california we have judy chu and recently elected congressman mark takano. >> he says it's shocking that asian-americans are hardworking and they vote for liberals. what is shocking? >> we vote for liberals because we are liberal. we believe in the democratic philosophy. and, yes, there are some asian-americans that are republicans, but, you know, many of them i would venture to say are republicans because it was a

democrat who put us in internment camps during the second world war, and also dropped the atomic bomb on hiroshima and nagasaki. but the majority of asian-americans are democrats. and we are very liberal, because the democratic philosophy is one that is better for asian-americans. >> and bill o'reilly denies that there was any national racism after world war ii. you experienced that in your life, have you not? >> we were in prison camps, barbed wire fence, century towers, machine guns pointed at us, searchlights following us at night when we made the night run to the latrine. when we came out of camp, we were literally penniless. and i remember our family lived on skid row for a few months, like many, many japanese-american families. and i remember a teach they're kept calling me the little jap boy.

no, the racism was intense, certainly during the war and after the war. we're americans. my mother was born in sacramento. my father was a san franciscan. my siblings and i were born in los angeles. innocent americans who were put into prison camps. is that not racism? >> it is. and it also -- i find it very insulting that bill o'reilly or anyone would have to qualify asian-americans as hardworking. in a roundabout way i think that is demeaning in itself. but i guess it's still up for interpretation from people on that side of the aisle. george takei, i really appreciate your time tonight on "the ed show." thank you so much. that is "the ed show." "the rachel maddow show" starts right now.

it's called wild card weekend for reasons that are mostly too boring to explain here. suffice it to say it's the first weekend of the play-offs that includes teams that did not all win their divisions, but they got into the play-offs anyway as wild cards. on the occasion of this wild card weekend in football land, the man who has decided to make himself washington's political wild card is the brand-newly retired massachusetts congressman barney frank. barney frank kicked off the weekend by going on tv this morning and said he would please like to be picked to be the new senator for massachusetts. he said he would like to be the interim replacement for john kerry, who is expected to be confirmed soon as president

obama's new secretary of state. >> a month ago, a few weeks ago in fact i said i wasn't interested, which is kind of like you're about to graduate and they said you got to go to summer school. but the deal now means that february, march and april are going to be among the most important months in american financial -- >> so you're going to consider it? >> yeah. i'm not going to be coy. it's not anything i've ever been good at. i told the governor i would now like, frankly, to do that. >> i told the governor that i would like to do that. barney frank then said to massachusetts governor deval patrick on national tv, he said, quote, coach, put me in. this is not usually how these things work, right? most people don't publicly lobby for this kind of job. you're supposed to say something diplomatic like oh, i'd be honored to accept the position if it's offered to me. but really, that's a decision for the governor to make. that's what everybody else does. barney frank, though, wild card, which is why everybody loves him.